[ExI] First PhD to an AGI

[Anders Sandberg]

On 14/07/2012 22:37, Kelly Anderson wrote:
> With our newly minted doctor in residence, the question occurs to me
> as to when you think an accredited university will first award a
> doctorate degree to an artificial intelligence? Anyone want to put
> their bet into the pool as to when that might occur?

There are two kinds of cases: 1) a "joke" or honorary doctorate assigned 
to some software as a publicity stunt, and 2) a serious doctorate due to 
a real academic accomplishment.

Type 1 is not too unlikely in the near future as some minor university 
desperately want to court publicity and pretends to give it. I would 
guess sometime by 2020 or so, but it could happen tomorrow - there are 
robot scientists now after all.

Type 2 is trickier: doctorates are legal claims, and in most countries I 
think you need to be a legal person to get one. So then the question 
becomes when you think AGIs will be legal persons somewhere. I suspect 
it will take a while even after AGI arrives - any sane legal system 
would be cautious about software persons.


-- 
Anders Sandberg,
Future of Humanity Institute
Philosophy Faculty of Oxford University